Chicken Waffle Grill Food Truck in Orlando, FL

I had lunch from a food truck which was new to me called Chicken Waffle Grill. They were parked outside a hotel near the airport where I was attending a convention. My first time trying chicken and waffles was also from an Orlando food truck called Melissa's Chicken and Waffles, which I don't think is around anymore. I'm glad there's another chicken & waffle food truck around to fill the void.

I had the Mac & Cheese Waffle. The waffle was topped with fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, lettuce, potato chips, and a slightly spicy sauce. Fries and syrup were served on the side. As unhealthy as this might sound, overall it was actually really tasty and all the flavors worked together well.

My big complaint was with the plastic silverware that the truck supplied. It was really flimsy and I went through three plastic forks snapping in half as I was trying to eat my lunch. Otherwise, I enjoyed my waffle!

Hash House A Go Go in Orlando, FL

Hash House A Go Go is a newish restaurant that has opened along International Drive. It is located in a building that was originally a Whistle Junction buffet, followed by a few Brazilian restaurants. Hash House A Go Go seems like the first restaurant to occupy the space that will probably be successful. They advertize themselves as having twisted farm food, which somehow translates to gigantic portions. The Hash House A Go Go chain seems to be popular with celebrities as well. The first thing you see upon entering is a giant tractor in the lobby, followed by walls covered in their celebrity endorsements. I guess if Martha Stewart likes Hash House A Go Go, then it must be good...

On my first visit to Hash House A Go Go, I tried one of their breakfasts and had the Sundried Tomato, Basil & Goat Cheese Farm Scramble. This was served with griddled mashed potatoes, biscuit, and fruit. While this breakfast wasn't as excessive as some of the other plates I witnessed being served, this was still a large breakfast. Goat cheese in scrambled eggs is always good. The mashed potatoes were tasty, sort of cooked on the outside until slightly crispy. The biscuit was a bit weird though. It didn't have the normal biscuit consistency compared to what's served elsewhere and seemed very dense. This was a perfectly good breakfast...

I ordered the Sage Fried Chicken & Bacon Waffle Tower on my second visit to the restaurant. This was a huge serving of chicken & waffles. The waffles had bacon cooked into the batter which was unique. I don't think I've ever had waffles containing bacon in the past. The tower of fried chicken was very tasty. The batter had a really nice flavor. I finished my whole breakfast here. Chicken & waffles was much larger and I made it about half way through. This chicken & waffles was much better than what I've had at places that specialize in chicken & waffles, so that's a good thing!

I enjoyed my food on both visits and I'd return to Hash House A Go Go!

Gladys Knight's Chicken and Waffles in Atlanta, GA

I spent a weekend in Atlanta and found myself looking for a late dinner around midnight on a Saturday night. I could have taken the easy way out and went to a 24 hour chain like Ihop or find diner, but that would be too easy and boring in a big city like Atlanta. There was bound to be something open that was a bit more interesting. After a quick search on my phone, I found a restaurant called Gladys Knight's Chicken and Waffles. It was open until 4am, was less than a mile from where I was at the time, and had the interesting gimmick of having a musician's name attached to a restaurant. My late night dinner was decided.

Gladys Knight's was a pretty fancy looking place, although the police officer standing guard near the restaurant entrance was a bit unusual. I wonder if the restaurant had issues with waffle robberies or drunken brawls over waffles at 3am? The menu consisted of chicken and waffles, shrimp and grits, as well as other southern foods. I was tempted to get the shrimp and grits for a moment, but then I remembered the restaurant's name. Because of this, I ordered the Midnight Train. As described by the menu, this consisted of four southern fried jumbo chicken wings and one original waffle.

The chicken wings were surprisingly large and the crispy fried batter had nice flavor. The waffle was what I expected with nothing exceptional. I'm not an expert in chicken and waffles, but I've had this dish at several different places now and everyone seems to do it differently. On this particular version of the meal, the chicken and the waffle were pretty much two separate items served together on one plate. I don't know if this is a more traditional version of chicken and waffles, but I've preferred it when the chicken and waffles have a little more cohesion between the two components. I was very indifferent with the Midnight Train from Gladys Knight's. Wasn't bad, but I don't think I'd come bad to get chicken and waffles here again.

Brick House Tavern & Tap in Orlando, FL

Brickhouse Tavern and Tap is one of the newer restaurants on International Drive near the convention center. This place was definitely a chain, but this is the only Brickhouse I've ever come across. The restaurant is modern looking inside with long couch-like booths leading up to a large fireplace. The clean design of the restaurant was sort of offset with the multitude of TVs hanging overhead all playing the fishing channel, but let's talk about the food instead of poorly placed TVs.

 

I had the Italian sausage hoagie. This was a good sized sandwich, stuffed with sausage, peppers, onions, spicy tomato sauce, and topped with cheese. Tator tots were served as a side. For the most part, the sandwich tasted good although I did have an issue with the bread. The bread was really soft and mushy, similar to a hot dog bun. So much so that the bread got soggy really quickly from the sauce on the sandwich. The soggy roll fell apart when I tried picking up the sandwich, thus defeating the normal sandwich eating method. The rest of the hoagie was good, but the bread was bad.

 

Someone else at the table ordered chicken & waffles. Perhaps this would have been a better choice!

Like many of the restaurants on International Drive that come and go, the food at Brickhouse Tavern was okay but wasn't something I'd go rushing back for. The restaurant was actually pretty void of customers when I ate there, so I actually wonder if they'll be around if I get the urge to give them another try sometime in the future...